Resources for learning

Students and teachers: when you’re looking for quality information to support your teaching and learning, we invite you to explore the resources below. Here you’ll find a wide range of resource types from New Zealand and overseas, along with tips on how to make best use of them.

We can lend resources

Teachers: You can borrow books and DVDs from one of our three service centres, to support your class programmes. National Library of New Zealand catalogue - Find items from the National Library's published collections.

Students: Talk to your teacher about borrowing from us.

For more details about this service, see Curriculum Services or order resources online.

Online Resources Box

 

Online resources from the National Library

Here you’ll find interesting digital items of all kinds – videos, articles, encyclopedias, photographs, old newspapers, homework help, and more. These are all free to use.

  1. High Interest Topics - Discover our selection of popular topic websites; from ANZAC to Summer Safety. These have been selected in response to teacher demand for curriculum related online resources.

  2. Primary Sources - People create and leave many clues about their lives. These are called primary sources. Explore a fascinating range of New Zealand primary sources in curriculum themed galleries with related teacher material.

  3. First World War resource guide for schools - The First World War resource guide for schools provides access to relevant online World War 1 and WW100 commemoration resources. This includes the experience and perspective of New Zealanders during the Great War, here and overseas.

  4. AnyQuestions - Online schoolwork help to students across the country. Log on between 1pm and 6pm Monday to Friday and chat with a research librarian about your schoolwork question. For additional support check out ManyAnswers. This service provides information supporting hundreds of popular question asked by students.

  5. EPIC - Access thousands of free electronic resources covering all curriculum learning areas from primary to secondary level. Included are: magazines, newspapers, encyclopaedia, images and databases.

  6. Digital New Zealand - Use DNZ to uncover over 25 million New Zealand items from videos, audio to photographs and cartoons. Create themed sets of DNZ items and share these with colleagues and students.

  7. Papers Past - Uncover more than two million pages of digitised New Zealand newspapers and periodicals. The collection covers the years 1839 to 1945. Browse by region, date, title or search by keyword.

  8. Index New Zealand - Search for articles published in over 1000 New Zealand newspapers, magazines, and journals, since 1987. Schools can request free copies of articles they discover on INNZ.

  9. The Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives (AJHR) - AJHR is a valuable tool for understanding how New Zealand has developed from its earliest colonial beginnings to the present. It provides a wealth of information for teachers and students studying colonial subjects, from the Land Wars to early New Zealand technology.

Online resources from other places

These great digital resources are provided by other NZ institutions:

  1. Te Ara - A comprehensive online encyclopaedia of New Zealand that provides a depth of historical and contemporary information. 

  2. Te Kete Ipurangi TKI - TKI is a bilingual site which provides major online educational material for New Zealand teachers, school leaders, and the wider education community. 

  3. New Zealand History Online - Extensive coverage of aspects of New Zealand history – including recent events like New Zealand music month  and decade studies. Suitable for teachers and secondary students.

  4. Te Papa - Explore the current exhibitions, education material, programmes and extensive collections of the Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa.

  5. Archway - Find valuable descriptive information about the historical material held in Archives New Zealand. Includes personnel records of servicemen who fought in World War 1.

  6. The International Children's Digital Library - offers a collection of outstanding books from around the world. The library's range of historical and contemporary books represents a vast range of cultures and languages including te reo Māori.

Copyright and attribution

When using any of the above online resources please be aware of their copyright requirements and usage restrictions. These are usually made clear on each site. 

If you are using items from these online resources you should also acknowledge or attribute them in your work. Most schools will have a referencing style that they expect all students to use. If unsure please ask your librarian.

For more information on copyright, reuse and how to cite items please feel free to explore the following and also the links below: